first time on 008

You can always add more wood, but I'd trust your wife. I have FEs which are different, but both the FE and the CS give clean smoke.

Except for ribs at one place, I normally don't eat much Que locally, but early this week, I had no choice. It was the only place close enough to meet my time constraints. I had eaten there years ago, and thought it was really great because that was all I had ever known. After getting used to Cookshack Que, I realized what I had been eating was over-smoked meat. All I could taste this week was creosote.

I have been smoking babybacks to give my dad for Christmas for years. He said last years ribs, which were the first on the FE were the best ever. He called Wednesday night and asked if I'd mind doing him a brisket this year, too.

thanks, i just don't seem to taste the smoke deep in the meat. my wife may very well be right as u say.
i've been messing around with sauce for a few years, but big "al's kc bbq sauce" @ allrecipes.com is really good and worth a try. i cut back on the red wine vinigar and added more smoke.. give it a try sometime. i've never seen sauce with cinnimmon, u can't really taste it but it will me missed if not added... kin'a like anchovie..

You might be getting desensitized to the smoke while standing around the smoker and watching the smoke come out the top,(not joking) or just sticking your head in it now and then to look at the meat (still not joking), etc. It happens.

You might wanna put the cold meat in the cold smoker and start it out low (200?) for the first few hours to get more smoke on/in it. With thick cuts like pork butt, you can cut in half and lay the flat surface on the shelves and get more smoke to the meat than you could smoking it whole.

Keep experimenting, taking good notes, and having fun !

thanks: i may be desinsitized for sure, but i didn't peak i went to bed cause i could. that is really the best part. the starting off cooler sounds good to me...

thanks hick..

Sure...that's what we're here for.

The more you use the smoker, the more smoke seasoning it will obtain, and the more smoke flavor you should get.

Merry Christmas.

quote:

Originally posted by GLH:
Sure...that's what we're here for.

The more you use the smoker, the more smoke seasoning it will obtain, and the more smoke flavor you should get.

Merry Christmas.

This can't be said enough. Although the cookshack uses very little wood sooner or later during the cook the wood will give up the ghost. Unless you add more wood(opening the door/ increasing cook time) that's all the smoke flavor you'll get. That's where a really well seasoned unit takes over and continues adding to the smoke flavor of your meat.

The seasoning of the inside of your cookshack come in handy with delicate meats such as fish. You can put the meat in without any wood at all and get a nice subtle smoke flavor.